Henry struggling:Arsene Wenger admits he will be taking a "risk" on captain Thierry Henry's fitness for the crucial Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven tomorrow night.
Henry is currently struggling with a troublesome hamstring as well as a foot problem, and was given a pain-killing injection to play in the first leg a fortnight ago. Although, Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor will be available despite his domestic suspension as Arsenal look to overcome a 1-0 deficit to progress to the quarter-finals, they could certainly do with their talisman available against the Dutch league leaders.
"His chances are 50-50, not more than that," the Arsenal manager said. In-form midfielder Tomas Rosicky is expected to need another week or so for his groin injury to fully heal.
Clear-out planned
Alan Curbishley is planning a mass clear-out in the summer and could lose up to 15 players before the new season gets underway. West Ham United's manager is set to ring the changes after seeing his side plummet to the foot of the Premiership and has faced nothing but turmoil since he took over only three months ago. Reports of excessive gambling, with players losing tens of thousands of pounds to each other playing cards, have destabilised the club and speeded their demise this season. To make matters worse, Curbishley found out last weekend that his defender Anton Ferdinand had lied to the club about visiting a sick grandmother on the Isle of Wight when instead he had flown to America to celebrate his birthday.
Ferdinand is likely to be one of the big names to leave the club if they go down. The club captain Nigel Reo-Coker, the England striker Dean Ashton and the Argentinian international Carlos Tevez will not relish the prospect of playing in the Championship and will attract offers from outside Upton Park. The conveyor belt of players moving out of the exit door is not likely to end there with at least 10 other players reviewing their positions.
Beckham injured
David Beckham is set to be sidelined for around a month after suffering ligament damage in his right knee, Real Madrid confirmed last night. Beckham sustained the injury during the second half of Sunday's La Liga match with Getafe, when he attempted a cross and then ran into the advertising hoardings behind the goal.
Also set for a similar spell on the sidelines for Madrid is on-loan Arsenal winger Jose Antonio Reyes, who suffered a knee injury of his own during Sunday's draw against Getafe.
McDonald may leave
Rob McDonald's position as Sligo Rovers' manager was thrown into serious doubt yesterday just days ahead of the club's first league outing of the new season as a dispute over the Englishman's contractual position came to a head, writes Emmet Malone.
The 48-year-old, who arrived at the Showgrounds at the end of last season after Seán Connor's departure, expressed frustration that he had still not been given a contract by his employers and apparently told players at training yesterday morning that it was likely to be his last day at the club.
"Everybody's entitled to a contract, no matter what they do for a living, and I'm no different," he said. "The situation needs to be sorted out and hopefully that will happen when the board meets later this evening but all I can say at this point is that things should be a bit clearer by tomorrow."
Sheringham wanted
Veteran West Ham striker Teddy Sheringham is a target for A-League side Sydney FC. The former Manchester United and England forward, who is 41 next month, is out of contract at Upton Park in the summer. "He's still playing at the top level and is, by any standards, an excellent player," club chief executive George Perry told Sydney's Daily Telegraph.
Takeover on hold
Ulster Unionist politician David Burnside will work on a potential Rangers takeover plan after his latest election battle. Burnside has held preliminary talks with associates in the City of London over forming a consortium to buy out Ibrox chairman David Murray.
But the Northern Ireland Assembly member claims his interest has been blown out of proportion and the group will only move if Murray puts the club up for sale.
Poland back down
Poland backed down yesterday from a row that had threatened to lead to the suspension of its national team from international competition. The Sports Ministry reinstated the management board at football's domestic governing body, suspended in January in the wake of a corruption scandal that has seen dozens of club and football association officials detained, Polish media reported. Fifa rejects any interference in FA affairs by politicians and had said the Polish national team and its clubs faced being banned from international matches unless the suspension was reversed.
In brief . . .
Wolves' Stephen Wardhas won the English Championship Player-of-the-Month award for February. The former Bohemians player has scored three goals since joining in the January transfer window . . . Bolton captain Kevin Nolanhas signed a new four-year contract.
